Insects....Love them or hate them.
I used to hate them with a vengeance.
Years ago a neighbor girl who was 9 years old used to ask me to go 'bug hunting' with her. I went along, she had her net and she'd net insects and tell me what they were. I'd photograph them.
She and her family moved away, but my fondness for searching for insects continued.
Below is the much disliked Japanese Beetle that everyone really dislikes. They do quite a bit of damage to certain plants and are horrible pests. This year's batch has been mild or they dislike the flowers I've planted.
My absooooolute favorite insect in July is the Hummingbird Clearwing Moth. They are hard to spot but patience is a virtue. Every day starting mid July when the Monarda or Bee Balm in the garden start to blossom, I go out no matter how hot is and sit in a shady spot to watch for them.
They are fast like the Hummingbird which is also active on my Bee Balm. Each year I think about taking the outhouse down but the growth of flowers around it bring in the bees, hummingbirds, and the Clearwing beauties.
The one below was by the house which surprised and pleased me.
I like to do that with butterflies also. To me it shows their quick movements.
How about my August Favorite Insect???
Phone shot. Yes, I got close...
I used to be afraid of these spiders but I realized that they are not interested in me at all. If you bump the grass that their web is on, they disappear into the grasses and return once you are gone.
Soon there will be thousands of them with larger webs
I just think they are so cool! [Long lens]
I can't wait to find some of the very large ones. They are absolutely beautiful.
I just think they are so cool! [Long lens]
I leave you with the Buck Moon setting Thursday morning.
Never thought about spiders that were itsy bitsy and didn't have a water down spout. Photos are cool. Nope, nope, not gonna take that creepy crawly walk. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteI actually learned quite a bit about spiders and how useful they are when my little friend got interested in insects. She used to keep beetles as pets in an aquarium.
DeleteNow I feel itchy.
ReplyDeleteSo many folks would feel that way. Buggy!
DeleteThe colors in the buck moon photo are spectacular! Lori
ReplyDeleteIt was beautiful!
DeleteThey are interesting. Do you know that we have spiders living in our car mirrors? They return year after year. (Did I write this already on a previous comment? It seems as though I have written it somewhere recently.)
ReplyDeleteYes! You mentioned that and I thought it was pretty wild! Maybe you and Spiderman have something in common!
DeleteMy middle son was a bug hunter!! He was also a bug killer. He did bug projects for 4H where he created a killing jar and then displayed them on pins in plexiglass boxes he and his dad created with identification labels. I kept those cases for several decades and he recently hung them in his garage. We would have neighbors and friends calling him to come get bugs they found, lol.
ReplyDeleteMy husband has been at war with the Japanese beetles and his Rose O Sharon. He is starting to win the battle!
We had tons of them a few years ago and not so many right now. I guess they ebb and flow. I helped my young neighbor when she did her insect projects for 4H, it was fun!
DeleteMainly, I am a birder, but in July and August when birding is a little slow, my attention turns to insects. A world of eternal fascination.
ReplyDeleteYes, that makes sense. Then winter comes and insects and birds are hard to find!
DeleteFortunately Japanese beetles were here for only one summer. The only insects that bother me are flies and mosquitoes. The moon shot is pretty.
ReplyDeleteThey are pretty sneaky, I barely noticed them this year. In other years I'd spend hours picking them and tossing them in a bucket of water.
DeleteYes, that moon set was fantastic! Actually, unless I go to the ridge I have to take photos about an hour before rise or set of any moon or sun!
I love your insect photography. They always interest me too. I don't like getting surprised by spiders who occasionally get into the house during the summer and run over me when I am in bed, and I can see them in the half-light, but they are fascinating to observe. I've been looking for clearwing moths but no luck so far. Happy to see yours. I need to plant bee balm.
ReplyDeleteI agree, spiders in the house can be a bit surprising, but I did research that and apparently they are out hunting other insects that are in our house!
DeleteI've played with cicadas and seen my dogs catch them. When the molt and leave their shells on trees and fences, it's fun to pluck them off. My Mom said, as kids in the 1930s, that they would collect the shells and connect the barbed legs together and make a necklace. I don't mind June bugs, and used to catch them to throw out of the swimming pool. My daughter-in-law freaks about them. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteWe used to catch them and bag them for our chickens who delighted in them for a meal of protein. Weird, but we were farm kids.
DeleteThey are fascinating insects!